Representatives from Pacific Island Countries and Territories, regional organisations, and worldwide technical companions convened in Honiara, Solomon Islands, from 10 to 14 August 2026 for the Annual Meeting of the Oceania Regional Seismic Network (ORSNET), the eleventh Meeting of the Pacific Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (PTWS) Regional Working Group for Pacific Island Countries and Territories (WG-PICT), and the Third Regional Geohazards Meeting.
The week-long gathering centered on strengthening regional cooperation to reinforce earthquake, tsunami, volcano, and landslide monitoring, early warning, preparedness, and resilience throughout the Pacific. Hosted in Solomon Islands, the assembly introduced collectively representatives from Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga, French Polynesia and New Caledonia, alongside technical and improvement companions, to assessment regional progress, establish rising challenges, and agree on precedence actions for the interval 2026–2030.
The discussions underscored the rising want for a coordinated, multi-hazard strategy to early warning programs in a area extremely uncovered to earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and landslides. Participants highlighted persistent challenges together with restricted technical capability, incomplete monitoring protection, tools upkeep constraints, and uneven entry to real-time geophysical information.